Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - November 8, 1976, Winnipeg, Manitoba Free press monday november 8, 1976 Cummings has new sound new image by Janice keys the most succinct Way to talk about Burton cum mings s re entry into Rock music is his own state ment on the jacket of his recently released album. It says simply i m Back he is indeed with a new band a new sound a new record a new con Cert tour and a whole Host of new Hopes plans pres sures and fears. The album is playing to the merry accompaniment of Cash registers jangling in records shops through out Canada and the United states. The major sin Gle release from it stand tall is getting airtime on radio stations from coast to coast. Still no one is quite sure How notoriously fickle Rock fans will re Spond to Burton cum mings Solo and during the last few Days pressure has been mounting As the Singer s Crew starts to pull everything together to make the show work. It will open tonight in the Centennial concert Hall. At 28, he s already had a Juicy chunk of the Rock world As the Lead Singer for the guess who and he s now ready to try again this time totally on his own terms. There s no element of Compromise be t for me whereas with the group 1 w a s constantly cutting Corners and compromising and doing things i did t always want to do. But As a artist i find i Uon i have to do that so it s a lot More Gratifying for me a hell of a lot More although the album s phenomenal instant Success it la no doubt be Gold by Christmas has excited him tremendously its sound is a lot Mellower than he had expected he said. I worked so Long on it. Actually it was a year s work from the time i started conceiving the material refining it record ing demos Here and then taking All that to los an g e 1 e s transporting the ideas there getting it on tape mixing adding re fining mixing and taking it apart and then mixing it again. I got caught up in it so heavily the re lease Date seemed years away and then All of a sudden it was released and it just went nuts All Over North America photo by Gerry Cairns Button Cummings Back with a when i hear it now it s Portuni ios Canada has to a lot softer than i thought but while 1 was caught up in the Middle of it 1 could t be As objective As 1 can now that it s a finished product. I think the next one will be a Little harder a Little Raun the second album will so into the works in mid january and is slated to be completed for a sum Mer release. In the meantime the band Mike Rhaull. Danny Weis. Randy Strom Jim Gordon and Ian Gardiner has been put together and the tour is now the focus. H will cover 18 cities in almost every where that has Large Hall. It s a Good Chance for us to let the band develop and jell before we take the whole show South into the he said. When the Canadian tour is completed. Burton Cummings himself will be ready to move kit and caboodle to the promised land of Rock musicians los Angeles. He s exhausted the of offer and it s Lime to test himself As a Solo artist against the real biggies us Rock music Elton John John Lennon. 1 aul my i Arlin a and others of that ilk. Los Iii in ivs is Home in All the things that make t h e music Industry go round booking agents studios record producers musicians and the Chance to work with lop people. The move will also free him from the irksome Ca Nadian radio and Tel vision commission s Rul ing that one in every four records played on the air must be Canadian. The ruling is a grievously sore Point with the Singer so much so that you get the definite impression it s Only by exercising the greatest self control he restrains him self from violence when he talks about it. That ruling is really a Thorn in my Side. There arc a lot of Canadian acts that Don t try As hard be cause they know their stuff will get played be cause it s legislated even if there Are better re cords being Cut in the new sound Stales. I Don t like that at All. 1 can speak really freely about that because it never in Lpyd our band. Had sold about a Mil lion and a half records be fore thai Law Ever came into existence. "1 see it really decaying As an Industry up Here be cause of that stupid Rul ing. A portion of the arts is nut risk. It s a fascist approach from the word go. How would you like it if they said to you. One out of four books you read has to be by a Canadian author or if you like paintings one out of four paintings you buy for your Home has to be by Ca Nadian artist it s not right it s just not right. But they re doing it with music on the radio. That s one of the reasons i really want to move. I Hope it changes. They think it s building an Industry up Here but it s just killing the ruling is driving top people out of the country because they want to compete against the Best the music world has to offer and not stagnate in an artificially protected environment he added. To presume that Canada can take its place right alongside the United states in Rock music is nonsensical rules or no rules. Rock n Roll was born in the United states and to think that 15 years later Canada or any other country can come along and immediately compete on an equal basis is unrealistic he said. Although Burton cum mings will be a trans planted Canadian for the Peak years of his career his musical roots were put Down in Winnipeg albeit in a situation that no longer exists the once ubiquitous Community club and school dances. He joined a group called the Devons when he was Only 13, in the Days before the ambitious drive took hold. I had a lot of fun in those Days because it was still at the Point where it was just for fun and the professional ambition drive had t taken Over yet. It was just fun to play locally and be heroes in Winnipeg it was a magical time because it was before the groups were relegated to playing in pubs. There were Good Community club dances and churches and schools and All those places to go to. Those Days Are gone for Good and it s too bad. 1 miss he left High school be fore being asked to join the guess who. Because he was failing everything. Kor him maths geography and literature never stood a Chance against music and recording. After joining the group at the axe of he knew he would either sink or swim with music. By the time he was 20, the group had its first Gold record. Ten years of recording touring happiness n d hassles followed before the guess who finally broke apart and scattered. Now. Time has softened some of the hard feelings and bitterness that led to and came after the split. It s a tremendous Bank of experience from which i can draw constantly. Ten years on the Road i have that under my Belt. I be lived through no. 1 records and Platinum albums. Now i Don t have to guess anything in the Industry any More and that s the nicest thing the experience and the knowledge 1 gained. Sure there were bad but there were Good times for Bome of the guess who it was the end As far As a Rock career was concerned. For Burton cum mings it was a new be ginning a beginning which has been foreshadowed for three years. I should have probably left the band two or three years ago to pursue this and i d be a lot further Down the line now and a Little less self conscious about it. But i was very insecure in the band be cause 1 never thought that i could pull it off by my self As a Solo artist. I knew just How much work it would be and i guess i was t ready at the time. I guess everything happens for a reason at the right it to tackle it and try again As a single. I m not time. Now i m ready to do insecure As his writing and approach to recording has matured so has his Atti tude towards the goodies the Rock world has to offer goodies which can Bend people right out of shape. But if they re there for taking they re also there for the refusing. It s Only As decadent As you want to let it be come. You can just shut your eyes to All that non sense if you Don t want to have anything to do with it or if you want to Freak yourself right out you can go ahead and do it the fascination the decadence is what magnifies it in a press. People want to hear the dirt. They re far More interested in the bad Side of it than in the Good Side of it and that s the problem. The press Snow balls things right out of proportion. Sure there were Guys like Hendrix and Morrison w h o flipped themselves right out but they paid the Price. They died it s nonsense to say that by becoming a Rock n Roll musician you re Gonna go Down the Drain because it s not True. It s absolutely not he used to indulge him self a lot More he admit Ted. Now he carts along a Small sound system and about 100 albums to listen to on the Road and books hold More fascination for him now than they Ever pages 21 38 Happy to go it did while he was in High school. His on the Road life is geared around that two hours on stage and every thing else is purely incidental to that the Singer said. People Are paying an awful lot of Money for tickets which a lot of them can t really afford to be taken out of whatever mundane existence they might dislike. And that s Why we re Here. You can Call us shaman whatever you Burton Cummings travelled with the guess i who a Long Way Down the Road that leads to super stardom. He s had a breathing spell now he s ready to test it further to push it As far As he can. I was on deck for 10 years with the guess who. Now i m ready to face the Pitcher. It s a tremendous position to be in. I m getting a second Chance most Guys Don t even get a first one at an International women s movement peaked Council by Judy Creighton up family editor a male member of the on Tario status of women coun cil was quoted recently As having said the women s movement As a social cause has probably already peaked and the excitement and momentum has died a Philip Manuel interviewed when his three year term on the Council was up added that he had never seen so Many people spend so much time in terms of legislative changes the Council has not been exactly wildly Success such councils committees or study groups were set up by various Levels of govern ment because of pressure from women after the report on the Royal commission on the status of women was tabled in the commons in 1970. The various bodies were concerned with issues per Taining to women from human rights to abortion. But a Cross Canada Survey by the Canadian press seems to indicate that the wheels of government grind slowly and Canadian women concerned with Equality in legislation will wait some time before it is reality. The effectiveness of government appointed com m i 11 e e s and councils has been questioned by some especially those actively involved such As Laura Sabia the former chairman of the Ontario Council. Mrs. Sabia of St. Cath marines ont. Quit her Post in july saying she was disgusted furious and disappointed with the government because it still had not changed some of the property Laws to give women in Case of divorce an equal share of the Home or provide for a division of assets. Hamilton ont., Alderman Pat Ford who is a member of that City s status of women committee said during a controversy Over the group not fulfilling its mandate that she would have to look very seriously at the possibility of disbanding the committee. At about the same time the committee s chairman Olive Ritchie who also is a member of the Ontario coun cil resigned her position but refused to elaborate on the reasons for her action. The advisory committee to City Council last officially re ported to Council in july 197s. Guidelines approved by Hamilton outline four fun t i o n s of the four year old committee. These Are to define investigate study and make re commendations to City coun cil on issues affecting the status of women in Hamilton inform citizens of Hamilton on issues affecting the status of women encourage women to participate in All aspects of society and continue proce dures to ensure the fulfilment of the City s mandate. On a Federal level the advisory Council on the status of women blasted the govern ment for being laggard in a report issued in september. Despite pressure prod Ding and publicity the Federal government is laggard in enacting legislation on women s the report said. It added that 60 per cent of the recommendations made by the Royal commission on the status of women have not been fully implemented. The most vocal of govern ment councils has been the Ontario group mainly be cause its former volatile chairman mrs. Sabia spoke openly to the press about her disregard for government pol icy. The Council s budget for 1976-1977 is a Cut of s 3 0 0 0 0 Over the previous year. The last annual report issued was for the year end ing 1974. Council members Are appointed by the Premier s of fice. They Are not salaried but Are paid s65 a Day for the time spent when the Council meets every second thursday of the month to discuss issues. The Quebec advisory coun cil on the status of women created in 1973, has been most concerned in the preparation of studies and re ports on textbooks in schools vocational guides and adult education for women. Laurette Robillard chair Man of the Council said the current budget is the same As it was last for the most part the Bud get is used to pay she said. There is some Money for research contracts but none for mrs. Robillard said no one has quit Over the Lack of accomplishment but she said she in t surprised by a Nat ural slowdown after the Binge of International women s year in 1075. One of the first actions taken by Premier William Bennett when his social cred it government took office last year in British Columbia was to abolish the position of provincial status of women co or Fli Nator. Karen Richardson re searcher for the Vancouver status of women Council said the province does con tribute monies to that group though. The 1975 budget for the Vancouver status of women was of which came As a Grant from the provincial government. Is. Richardson said there Are about 150 status of women groups across the province but no group reporting to any level of government. Alberta established a women s Bureau 10 years ago to commemorate the 50th anniversary of women s rights to vote in Alberta. There is a staff of two in the Bureau working under a mandate of an information and referral Louise Watson offers exclusive package vacations to Barbados january 27 february 10. Air fare transfers. 11 nights sharing twin accommodation with Kitchen on the sea Pool Good location. per person Standard basis-s715 00 per person deluxe basis Waikiki still a Lew moms left on february 5 departure air fare transfers. 1-1 nights accommodation sharing twin in deluxe Ocean front rooms at the fabulous Sheraton Waikiki hotel no other Agency can make this offer per person deluxe basis Only. Strand cruise package some space still available for March 11 departure of a two week cruise sorry. 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